Gloucestershire bus services cancelled 48 times in one day

Stagecoach West has blamed the lack of drivers

Staff shortages have resulted in 48 timetabled bus services being cancelled in Gloucestershire in one day.

Stagecoach West cancelled services for Stroud and the Five Valleys on 27 June.

Users said route 63 alone, connecting Forest Green to Gloucester, via Stroud, was cancelled 14 times.

"These are vital services that people rely on," resident Adrian Oldman said. The cabinet member for bus transport Philip Robinson said the council was aware of on-going issues.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Mr Robinson said the cause of the cancellations was a shortage of drivers, which was also a national problem affecting all bus operators.

'Staffing challenges'

"Although over 100 drivers have been recruited in recent months by Stagecoach and recruitment remains their highest priority, the council is limited in what action it can take as most issues relate to commercial services," he said.

"However, we continue to work closely with Stagecoach to understand the scale of the issue and monitor performance and we will continue to raise our concerns with them about the importance of a stable commercial network for the county and its communities."

Mr Oldman described the level of cancellations as "the norm" in the Stroud district.

"People rely on these services to get to work, school, college, hospital and GP appointments, shops and visit friends," he said.

Stagecoach West said it understood that cancellations were frustrating and thanked bus users for their patience and understanding.

"As with many industries across the country, we are continuing to face some staffing challenges," operations director Martin Gibbon said.

"This, coupled with sickness absence, is having an impact on some of our bus services in Gloucestershire.

"Our teams are working incredibly hard to ensure the vast majority of local services continue to run as normal."